Jenya Diamond, Graphic Designer, Boston:

Game night is once a month, on a Tuesday. It's more casual than a dinner party but more structured than sitting around. My friends don't feel stressed about what to wear, what to bring, or what time to get there. Since we all have different careers —a teacher, a student, a comedian, a social worker, a jilted dot-commer — we operate on different schedules. Game night is the only constant. It means we don't have to find time to plan one-on-one dinners.

We always order pizza, and the host provides typical snack fare. The location rotates among the five or six hard-core game-nighters, and other fringe players show up. If it's eight or nine people, the game is Taboo or Pictionary, but if it's only four, it's poker or Twister.

We have hours to catch up, so I never get the feeling that I'm out of touch with my friends or that I need to work at being a better friend.